﻿powell.] 
  IMPROVIDENCE 
  OF 
  INDIANS. 
  37 
  

  

  presented 
  with 
  the 
  recurring 
  seasons. 
  In 
  civilization, 
  hunting 
  and 
  

   fishing 
  are 
  often 
  considered 
  sports, 
  hut 
  in 
  savagery 
  they 
  are 
  labors, 
  

   and 
  call 
  for 
  endurance, 
  patience, 
  and 
  sagacity. 
  And 
  these 
  are 
  exer- 
  

   cised 
  to 
  a 
  reasonable 
  degree 
  among 
  all 
  savage 
  peoples. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  probable 
  that 
  the 
  real 
  difficulty 
  of 
  purchasing 
  quantities 
  of 
  

   food 
  from 
  Indians 
  has, 
  in 
  most 
  cases, 
  not 
  been 
  properly 
  understood. 
  

   Unless 
  the 
  alien 
  is 
  present 
  at 
  a 
  time 
  of 
  great 
  abundance, 
  when 
  there 
  

   is 
  more 
  on 
  hand 
  or 
  easily 
  obtainable 
  than 
  sufficient 
  to 
  supply 
  the 
  

   wants 
  of 
  the 
  people, 
  food 
  can 
  not 
  be 
  bought 
  of 
  the 
  Indians. 
  This 
  

   arises 
  from 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  tribal 
  tenure 
  is 
  communal, 
  and 
  to 
  get 
  

   food 
  by 
  purchase 
  requires 
  a 
  treaty 
  at 
  which 
  all 
  the 
  leading 
  members 
  

   of 
  the 
  tribe 
  are 
  present 
  and 
  give 
  consent. 
  

  

  As 
  an 
  illustration 
  of 
  the 
  improvidence 
  of 
  the 
  Indians 
  generally, 
  

   the 
  habits 
  of 
  the 
  tribes 
  along 
  the 
  Columbia 
  River 
  may 
  be 
  cited. 
  The 
  

   Columbia 
  River 
  has 
  often 
  been 
  pointed 
  to 
  as 
  the 
  probable 
  source 
  of 
  

   a 
  great 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  Indian 
  population 
  of 
  this 
  country, 
  because 
  of 
  the 
  

   enormous 
  supply 
  of 
  salmon 
  furnished 
  by 
  it 
  and 
  its 
  tributaries. 
  If 
  

   an 
  abundant 
  and 
  readily 
  obtained 
  supply 
  of 
  food 
  was 
  all 
  that 
  was 
  

   necessary 
  to 
  insure 
  a 
  large 
  population, 
  and 
  if 
  population 
  always 
  in- 
  

   creased 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  limit 
  of 
  food 
  supply, 
  unquestionably 
  the 
  theory 
  of 
  

   repeated 
  migratory 
  waves 
  of 
  surplus 
  population 
  from 
  the 
  Columbia 
  

   Valley 
  would 
  be 
  plausible 
  enough. 
  It 
  is 
  only 
  necessary, 
  however, 
  to 
  

   turn 
  to 
  the 
  accounts 
  of 
  the 
  earlier 
  explorers 
  of 
  this 
  region, 
  Lewis 
  

   and 
  Clarke, 
  for 
  example, 
  to 
  refute 
  the 
  idea, 
  so 
  far 
  at 
  least 
  as 
  the 
  

   Columbia 
  Valley 
  is 
  concerned, 
  although 
  a 
  study 
  of 
  the 
  many 
  diverse 
  

   languages 
  spread 
  over 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  would 
  seem 
  sufficiently 
  to 
  

   prove 
  that 
  the 
  tribes 
  speaking 
  them 
  could 
  not 
  have 
  originated 
  at 
  a 
  

   common 
  center, 
  unless, 
  indeed, 
  at 
  a 
  period 
  anterior 
  to 
  the 
  formation 
  

   of 
  organized 
  language. 
  

  

  The 
  Indians 
  inhabiting 
  the 
  Columbia 
  Valley 
  were 
  divided 
  into 
  

   many 
  tribes, 
  belonging 
  to 
  several 
  distinct 
  linguistic 
  families. 
  They 
  

   all 
  were 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  culture 
  status, 
  however, 
  and 
  differed 
  in 
  habits 
  

   and 
  arts 
  only 
  in 
  minor 
  particulars. 
  All 
  of 
  them 
  had 
  recourse 
  to 
  the 
  

   salmon 
  of 
  the 
  Columbia 
  for 
  the 
  main 
  part 
  of 
  their 
  subsistence, 
  and 
  

   all 
  practiced 
  similar 
  crude 
  methods 
  of 
  curing 
  fish 
  and 
  storing 
  it 
  away 
  

   for 
  the 
  winter. 
  Without 
  exception, 
  judging 
  from 
  the 
  accounts 
  of 
  

   the 
  above 
  mentioned 
  and 
  of 
  more 
  recent 
  authors, 
  all 
  the 
  tribes 
  suf- 
  

   fered 
  periodically 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  from 
  insufficient 
  food 
  supply, 
  although, 
  

   with 
  the 
  exercise 
  of 
  due 
  forethought 
  and 
  economy, 
  even 
  with 
  their 
  

   rude 
  methods 
  of 
  catching 
  and 
  curing 
  salmon, 
  enough 
  might 
  here 
  

   have 
  been 
  cured 
  annually 
  to 
  suffice 
  for 
  the 
  wants 
  of 
  the 
  Indian 
  popu- 
  

   lation 
  of 
  the 
  entire 
  Northwest 
  for 
  several 
  years. 
  

  

  In 
  their 
  ascent 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  in 
  spring, 
  before 
  the 
  salmon 
  run, 
  it 
  

   was 
  only 
  with 
  great 
  difficulty 
  that 
  Lewis 
  and 
  Clarke 
  were 
  able 
  to 
  

   provide 
  themselves 
  by 
  purchase 
  with 
  enough 
  food 
  to 
  keep 
  themselves 
  

   from 
  starving. 
  Several 
  parties 
  of 
  Indians 
  from 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  the 
  

  

  